Euro 2012 Day 6 Wrap: Portugal Edge 5-Goal Thriller, Germans Flex Muscles

First, Day 6 of Euro 2012 gave us the game of the tournament so far. Then, we saw one of its best goals.

Group B took center stage again Wednesday, and the "Group of Death" didn't disappoint. Portugal and Denmark thrilled fans in a five-goal thriller, with Portugal coming out on top thanks to a guy not named Cristiano Ronaldo.

Later, Germany and Netherlands renewed a bitter old rivalry. The stakes were high for both, but only one could claim the desired result.

All the details from yet another exciting day of Euro 2012 action are inside.

Pepe Gives Portugal a Lifeline

After a losing debut against Germany in the Group of Death, Portugal found a lifeline through Pepe in the 24th minute against the Danes.

João Moutinho played his corner kick to Denmark's near post, where Pepe turned his glancing yet powerful header into the net from an almost impossible angle.

Moments before, the Portugal and Real Madrid defender had writhed on the pitch with an apparent injury, but Pepe didn't seem to notice the pain while scoring.

Helder Postiga: Striker

After the loss to Germany, Portugal drew deserved criticism for its unhealthy levels of dependence on Cristiano Ronaldo and for lacking a true center forward.

But Helder Postiga, the team's center forward, proved his worth with a fine near-post run and clever, top-corner finish in the 35th minute.

It was exactly the kind of goal good center forwards score, and it gave Portugal a seemingly secure 2-0 lead.

Danish Comeback

Denmark pulled a goal back with its first genuine scoring opportunity of the match.

Defender Lars Jacobsen lobbed a pass over Portugal's back line, and Michael Krohn-Dehli—the hero of the upset win over Holland—headed the ball back across the face of goal with Portugal goalkeeper Rui Patricio advancing to meet him.

Nicklas Bendtner—making his 50th international appearance—streaked toward goal and nodded home with no defenders in the vicinity.

After a couple Cristiano Ronaldo misses in the second half—including a glorious one-on-one chance in the 78th minute—Bendtner struck again.

The big Dane found the net with his head again, this time slipping behind Pepe and powering the ball in at the near post.

For those keeping track, Bendtner's goal was the 12th headed goal of Euro 2012. The current record for such things is 17.

Varela Rescues Portugal

Silvestre Varela pulled Portugal back from the brink, rescuing the win with a precision strike in the 87th minute, just three minutes after coming on as a substitute for Raul Meireles.

Varela positioned himself on the end of Fabio Coentrão's cross on the right side of the box, whiffed with a left-footed shot, then turned and rifled a right-footed missile past Stephan Andersen at the near post.

It was only Varela's second international goal and first since March 2011.

Super Mario's 2

Right after the game of the tournament, fans were treated to one of its best goals so far.

Germany's Mario Gomez scored the opener in his team's 2-1 victory over the Netherlands, and the goal was worthy of such a historic, heated rivalry.

Thomas Müller started the move by cutting in from the right flank and passing to a wide-open Bastian Schweinsteiger in the middle. Schweinsteiger slipped a pass through the Dutch defense to Gomez, who received the ball and twirled in one smooth motion before beating Maarten Stekelenburg.

Click here to watch a video of the goal.

Gomez also scored Germany's second 14 minutes later.

Robin's Rocket

Holland lost again Wednesday, but at least Bert van Marwijk's team scored this time.

Robin van Persie did the honors, finally ending the Dutch scoring drought with a right-footed rocket past Manuel Neuer in the 73rd minute.

As any Arsenal fan will proudly tell you, the goal was doubly impressive because it came from RvP's weak foot. Just imagine what he could have done with his left.

Click here for the vid.

Group B Table

All four teams in Group B are still alive. No team has clinched a spot in the knockout phase yet.

Germany lead Group B with six points through two matches. Joachim Löw's men have won both of their games, but still haven't qualified for the knockout stage.

If the Germans lose to Denmark on Saturday and Portugal defeat Holland, that would mean Germany, Denmark and Portugal all finish with six points. A series of tiebreakers would determine which two teams advance.

Similarly, Denmark, Portugal and the Netherlands could all finish with three points. Tiebreakers would then be needed.

Click here for a full explanation of the tiebreakers involved.

Off the Pitch

UEFA has fined the Russian federation $150,000.

The fine stems from an incident after Russia's 4-1 win over the Czech Republic on June 8, when Russian fans were seen attacking stadium stewards.

From the Associated Press, via ESPNSoccernet:

"

UEFA also gave the federation a suspended six-point deduction for a repeat offense, meaning Russia could be deducted six points in its qualifying group for the next European Championship if its fans turn violent again at Euro 2012.

"This decision is suspended for a probationary period running from now until the end of the playoffs of the next UEFA European Football Championship," UEFA said in a statement.

"

Some Russian fans also clashed with rival Polish supporters Tuesday in Warsaw, forcing police to use tear gas and rubber bullets to control unruly fans.

Former United States international defender Jimmy Conrad was on site in Warsaw when the violence broke out, and he reported on the incident for KICKTV.

Click here to watch Conrad's report from Warsaw and here to browse more KICKTV reports from Euro 2012.

Kilbane Channels Vanilla Ice

Have you ever wondered what Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby" would sound like with an Irish accent?

Of course you have.

Thankfully, former Republic of Ireland international Kevin Kilbane treated Irish fans to a rendition this week in Gdansk, the site of Ireland's match against defending champs Spain on Thursday.

Enjoy.

Up Next

Group C resumes play Thursday with two matches.

Italy and Croatia play the early match at noon Eastern in Poznan.

Ireland and Spain kick off at 2:45 p.m. in Gdansk.

Croatia lead Group C with three points, while Italy and Spain have one each. The Irish have no points through one match.

Overnight Reading

The best goal of the tournament so far: Kuba's golazo.

B/R world football lead writer Will Tidey on Portugal's thrilling win over Denmark.

Yours truly on Germany's victory over Holland.

Follow @MikeCummings37